Matt Bracken, I have a couple of questions

Mr. Bracken, so far I am enjoying your book a great deal. I think it will be one of those few books that I read and re-read. Couple of questions though. Why on earth did you make Ranya's Colt Commander .45 with an extended slide stop. That ruined the whole book for me. No, not really, but of all things to put on there. What were you thinking? :banghead:

Next, if you needed a proof reader, I would have been happy to do the job. Even the most maticulous author needs one (we all become blind to our own typos), and it seems that you didn't bother with that step. It doesn't make it any less a great read, but it does distract a bit (I find myself pencilling in the corrections). Maybe next printing (and I'm sure there will be a next printing, or two or three) you could hire a proof reader. Hell, I'd do if for free. Let me know.

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Boats

March 11, 2004, 01:26 PM

When one applies for a job, one should be meticulously prepared. Sorry, but I couldn't resist. Writing is easy. Writing well is fiendishly difficult.

tiberius

March 11, 2004, 01:44 PM

Even the most maticulous author needs one (we all become blind to our own typos), and it seems that you didn't bother with that step. This is one of the funniest sentences I have read in a long time. Irony anyone? :D

Although I guess you do sort of prove your own point. :)

edited to correct my own typo

The Real Hawkeye

March 11, 2004, 02:23 PM

Yeah, you guys are real funny. And, YES, I do prove my own point. Had I a proof reader, that error would not have gotten through to final "printing." :neener:

The Real Hawkeye

March 11, 2004, 02:26 PM

Of course "maticulous" was misspelled on purpose. I meant to do that. :rolleyes:

grnzbra

March 11, 2004, 02:27 PM

Pardon my ignorance, but what's the problem? A Colt Commander can't be fitted with an extended slide stop?

Kinsman

March 11, 2004, 02:33 PM

Mebbe a bit off topic, but that is one fine quote by Dianne.

Razor

March 11, 2004, 02:35 PM

Sounds like you have a 1st edition, The Real Hawkeye.

Matt has mentioned that the 2nd printing has corrections in it.

The Real Hawkeye

March 11, 2004, 04:52 PM

Nope, it's a second edition. In the first 100 pages, I came across five typing errors, such as "... but all you can thin about is ..." on page 45. Naturally, I squeezed in a little "k" at the end of "thin" in my copy. Am I the only one whose noticed this? Maybe I'm too O.C. Fantastic book, though. I hope that's clear. I can't wait to get back to reading it. I just have to wonder who, if anyone, is doing the proof reading. I know from personal experience that an author cannot do his own proof reading, so this is not a statement about Matt. If he has a proof reader, he should fire him.

Silent Bob

March 11, 2004, 05:21 PM

Since I've discovered internet discussion forums several years ago, I have become fairly oblivious to spelling/grammar mistakes...

HELLO I JUST BOGHT A GUN AND IT JAMS ON THE LAST BULLET IN THE CLIP I CANT FIGGUR OUT WHAT IS WRONG I AM SHOTTING WOLF AMMO IS THIS GOOD AMMO PROLLY MIGHT BE PROBLEM??? NOT SURE SHULD I TAKE IT BACK AND GET MY MONEY BACK? THANKS FOR ANY HELP WILL APPREC8 IT.

So I hardly notice it anymore when reading books and other printed material...

Razor

March 11, 2004, 07:28 PM

such as "... but all you can thin about is ..." on page 45.

I just checked my 1st ed copy and the same quote is "...but all you can thing about is..."

Well, at least the "g" is gone....:scrutiny:

I remember noticing a few others, but I gave him some slack as a first time author, plus the fact he's a High Roader ( the fact it's a great story helps, too)...:)

greyhound

March 11, 2004, 07:43 PM

Great book, BTW. I am almost finished and hoping for a sequel?

When I picture the President in the book I think of John Kerry!:D

7.62FullMetalJacket

March 11, 2004, 08:09 PM

Yeah, I noticed the typos. Overall, it is a great book and a great story. I, too, get hung on the typos. It is the cost of doing business (fun). I, however, did not mark up the copy :neener:

I am almost finished the book and another book is in the works. Please hurry :D

The Real Hawkeye

March 11, 2004, 09:05 PM

Razor, you got it right. Now that I look at it, I wrote the "K" in over the "g."

I agree that it's a great book.

grampster

March 11, 2004, 09:33 PM

Hah! I have an AUTOGRAPHED copy of the first edition.
Who kares abot afew tipos anyhew.:neener:

Sequel is in the works and its going to be a good one.

grampster

gbelleh

March 11, 2004, 10:35 PM

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at an Elingsh uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer
in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is
taht frist and lsat ltteer is at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a
toatl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcuseae we
do not raed ervey lteter by it slef but the wrod as a wlohe.

CB900F

March 11, 2004, 10:38 PM

Fella's;

And the title of the book would be?

Grnzbra's question remains unanswered also.

Could someone break away from the typo's discussion long enough to enlighten us?

T'anks

900F

4v50 Gary

March 11, 2004, 10:42 PM

Eff'n you'uns got the tyme, the book is well wurth the reed.:)

Oh, regarding extended slide stops, AFAIK, it's a matter of personal taste. I hate them and keep almost everything factory except for the safety. As a bona-fide southpaw, I like my ambi's and a good trigger job and Trijicon night sights. My personal dislike of extended slide stops, or magazine release or virtually anything else is that there's more to snag on as well as a general distrust of aftermarket products.

PromptCritical

March 12, 2004, 01:24 AM

The Book: Enemies Foreign and Domestic

www.enemiesforeignanddomestic.com

I'm on page 355 right now and can't put it down.

S_O_Laban

March 12, 2004, 02:48 AM

I finished reading it about a week ago:D and have been meaning to give Matt and his book a plug. If you have $20 dollars burning a hole in your pocket this is where to spend it. www.enemiesforeignanddomestic.com

Just follow the link and before you know it you will have a personally autograpghed copy of the book. All for just $20 which includes S&H. A bargan at any price, this is a great story.

As for typos, I seen many typos in books published by the best publishers. Every book of any size has them in early printings. I think Matt deseves a big " atta boy!!" for doing as well as he did. This was no small project.

only1asterisk

March 12, 2004, 03:25 AM

The Real Hawkeye,

When your first novel comes out I'll proofread for you!

On the subject of Mr. Bracken's book, my initial reading only found 2 "mistakes" (my book is the later printing). These were not typos, one being a unit of measure and the other being a pronoun. Both would be fiendishly difficult for even the best proof reader to detect.

Overall the book was one of the best works of fiction I've read in several years. Published without the aid of pubishing house and their ghostwriters, editors, proofreaders, and marketing departments. Mr. Bracken had/has nothing to prove to me or anyone else. He didn't have to write and publish his great book to earn my respect. I'm glad he did. If you hadn't written in yours I'd trade my corrected version for your first printing.

David

Travis McGee

March 12, 2004, 04:35 AM

Dammit, I take a few days off due to a family emergency, and look what springs up in my absence! Yikes!

Anyway, this self-publishing thing has been a real learning process for me, in many ways. Hiring a professional proofreader being one point among many.

Hawkeye, believe it or not, the "thing" on page 45 was a new one to me; I just put it on my list of corrections for the 3rd edition. Thanks! For those who want to play "find the typos," even in the 2nd edition, I have found or been notified of typos on pages:

45,66,69,89,91,117,140,148,159,178,207,224,227,280,295,298,307,354,358,389,402,459 and 461.

There are a few missing words, and one misnamed character, among other errors. And one contradiction, about what happened to the rest of the NFL season. If anyone can find any other errors, PLEASE notify me at steelcutter48@yahoo.com .

I guess this is one advantage of printing in small lots. The first edition was 1,000 copies, the current 2nd edition is 2,000 copies. By the time the third edition rolls around, it should be almost perfectly free of typos. It's incredible how I could read and re-read every chapter 20 times, and not "see" all of these typos! Not to mention my dozen or so volunteer proofreaders who went through each chapter as I finished them. Oh well, live and learn.

If anyone wants a signed and inscribed postcard replica of the front cover, just email me at steelcutter48@yahoo.com, and I'll fire one out to you. (This can be a bookmark for those who didn't order signed copies.) Also, if anyone would be willing to stick a postcard-cover up at their local range or shooters' hangout, I'd also be happy to send you some. It's not an easy thing to promote a self-published book! But OTOH, I'm not settling for the 8% rookie royalties a "real" publisher would grant me, (three years from now, after I wore out several sets of kneepads on 5th Avenue in NYC).

And if anyone is buddies with a gun store owner, I discount more than 50% for cases of 16 books or more.

This is what the postcard looks like:
http://matthewbracken.web.aplus.net/bookcover.jpg

(The sequel I'm working on is called "Domestic Enemies," and is set five years after EFAD, or notionally about 2010. Ranya returns as a major character. DE will have a strong Southwestern theme, as "Nuevo Mexico" is turned into "The American Kosovo," by radical MeChistas who take over the state government.)

Matt

Valkman

March 12, 2004, 04:51 AM

Matt, it was a pleasure meeting you at the Vegas THR dinner and getting to you sign your book when I bought it afterward. I have read it since and found it - outstanding! I will await the sequel. :D

Travis McGee

March 12, 2004, 10:40 AM

Valkman,
That THR dinner in Vegas was one of the highlights of the SHOT Show for me! As far as the sequel to EFAD, I'm kind of "stalled" right now, so it might be a while...
Matt

The Real Hawkeye

March 12, 2004, 11:05 AM

Matt, thanks for being one of the few to take my post as it was intended. As I'm sure you understand, the comment about the extended slide stop was an ice-breaker. Just because I hate them things doesn't mean everybody has to. Secondly, the point about typos was intended for the benefit of your book, and its future further success. Haven't finished it yet, but glad to hear a sequel is in the works.

P.S., I caught every one of the typos you cited in your post, corresponding to the page I am up to. I must be pretty good at it.

P.P.S. To the fellow who said he was waiting for my first book to be published, have you ever heard of Harry Turtledove?

P.P.P.S. I was just kidding about being Harry Turtledove. ;)

Travis McGee

March 12, 2004, 11:52 AM

I accept your take on extended slide stops etc, my thinking was that Ranya has a smaller woman's hand, and being a bike rider she has to be able to shoot either handed. IOW, any devices to make reloading easier would be a benefit to her. But of course, that's all a matter of opinion and taste. I could have just given her a Glock or a revolver, but I wanted to make the connection to her gunsmith father, so that was a reason to do a little customizing on her 1911.

You have no idea how grateful I am every time a typo or error is found and relayed to me! This is the best help I can receive, in order to strengthen the present book in the future million-selling edition.

As far as the sequel, I welcome any general discussion of the strong and weak thematic/character points of EFAD, in order to help me to make the coming Domestic Enemies the best possible novel. I would just ask that we don't post "spoilers" about the ending of EFAD on these threads.

If anyone wants to discuss the theme of EFAD, the ending and so on, maybe we can start a thread with a "spoiler warning" in the title. I'm still very open to input for ideas High Roaders would like to see incorporated into Domestic Enemies.

Matt
http://matthewbracken.web.aplus.net/snakelogo.jpg

The Real Hawkeye

March 12, 2004, 02:01 PM

That makes sense re the extended slide stop. Hadn't thought of that.

P95Carry

March 12, 2004, 02:14 PM

I think Matt deseves a big " atta boy!!" for doing as well as he did. Agreed, 100%! :)

I spot typo's every time .. but that's usually in the work of others!! Thinking about it .. a handful of typo's in what? 100,000 words .. whatever ..... I'll live with that!:p

Correia

March 12, 2004, 03:18 PM

Matt, I think you should start that thread for critique and commentary. Having it posted under your name would gather the most attention.

I really enjoyed your book. I did not catch any of the typos because I read the book in one evening and the next morning. :)

Some people like extended slide stops. Personally I don't but hey that is fine. I know some great shooters that use them.

I liked the characters. It was obvious that the author is familiar with the gun culture because I recognized many of the characters as people that I know. :)

Travis McGee

March 12, 2004, 05:39 PM

Correia: I think I'll do that, start a fresh critique thread on what folks liked and didn't like about EFAD, and ways to make Domestic Enemies fire on all cylinders.

Matt

Shanghai McCoy

March 12, 2004, 11:22 PM

Let me just chime in on what a GREAT book this is.S O Laban loaned me his copy but I have since ordered one for myself and one for a buddy.Bravo Zulus Matt.Best Regards,Paul

garrettwc

March 12, 2004, 11:35 PM

It's incredible how I could read and re-read every chapter 20 times, and not "see" all of these typos! Not to mention my dozen or so volunteer proofreaders who went through each chapter as I finished them. Oh well, live and learn.

Matt, don't be so hard on yourself.

I remember reading an article a few years ago on reading/proofreading.

According to the author, your brain corrects the errors your eyes see so you don't always notice them. Re-reading the same passage repeatedly magnifies the effect. In the days before spell check and desktop publishing, newspaper editors used to read their copy backwards to break up the process.

Travis McGee

March 13, 2004, 05:17 AM

garrettwc:
I totally believe that. Before publishing EFAD, I thought that by being super careful and "maticulous" I could catch all of the errors. Ha! How far from the truth that is. And I believe there is merit in proofreading a book backwards, page by page, to break up the story.

http://matthewbracken.web.aplus.net/snakelogo.jpg

Travis McGee

March 14, 2004, 04:50 AM

Shanghai McCoy: Thanks for the compliments, I really appreciate them, and I'm glad to see that the book is "making the rounds" on the recommendation of friends.

And I'd like to mention that if anyone wants those postcard sized EFAD covers to post up at their local range, just shoot me an email a steelcutter48@yahoo.com.

Matt

guyrichards

March 14, 2004, 06:56 AM

hi matt,
is this book available in a pdf format or ebook format for download?? obviously at a cost.

thanks

guy

Travis McGee

March 14, 2004, 01:55 PM

Guy Richards:
Not yet, I'm still a primitive. Just the dead tree book version so far.

But you can read the first 20 chapters on the website, and get the full flavor and political point.
Matt

mountainclmbr

March 14, 2004, 09:20 PM

EFAD was a great read. Best book in the last year.

Knot being two anla I didtn notiec the typos. But I kant reed two gud!

Travis McGee

March 15, 2004, 01:46 AM

Mountainclmbr:
Thanks! I just hope that you've read more than one book in the last year!
Matt

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